Ending
by Zoe Marie888
Summary: An extension of s01 e05 ending after Peyton walks away from Nathan and Lucas.


A/N - This is kind of a squashing together of two episodes. s01 e05 after Peyton walks away from Nathan and Lucas at the end, and s02 e06, were Peyton ends up alone. I always wanted Lucas to come to her rescue in season 2, and try to will him into existence every time I watch that scene, so I've written it my way lol.

This is the first time I've let anyone read my writing (well since I finished high school lol), so reviews are greatly appreciated, even if it is just to comment on my spelling or grammar, which I know aren't perfect but I'm trying lol.

I do not own OTH or any of the characters x

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><p>Peyton pushed her way out of the gym doors, heading towards the parking lot, once again intent on getting back into her black Mercury Comet and driving away from the mess that was her life. She had been driving most of the day, but somehow managed to end up right back at square one. Her blonde curls hung in lank ribbons around her shoulders, as she pulled her leather jacket closer around her slender body. This week was always the worst out of the year, with the end of October seeming like a distant speck on the horizon. The fact her father hadn't even come home hurt her further. She had received his email first thing this morning whilst she was debating whether or not to go to school, and the five measly lines had soon been sent to the trash can, but that couldn't erase them from her memory. <em>'I'm sorry baby girl… I Love You.' <em>She needed_ him_ here, not just his words, but she would never tell him that, knowing how important his job was to him.

"Peyton, wait up," she heard her name being called from behind her. Sighing, she rolled her eyes and turned around to face her ex-boyfriend Nathan, as he jogged the final few steps to catch up with her, pulling on his blue varsity jacket. "I'm glad you came. I knew you would," he continued, looking down into her green eyes, not seeing that they slid away from his face holding no emotion. "I want you to know things are going to be different for us…"

"Did you know my mom died tonight, seven years ago?" she asked, cutting him off and watching as confusion flashed across his eyes and his body language instantly changed, looking uncomfortable. "You didn't know because you never asked. I didn't come here for _you_ tonight…"

"Then why did you come?" he cut her off, just as a door behind her slammed and Nathan's attention was quickly shifted to focus over her shoulder. His dark brown eyes instantly turned black with hatred, causing Peyton to glance over her shoulder, even though she knew without looking who would be stood behind her.

x

Lucas pulled the last book out of his locker before slamming it shut and heading out of the double doors at the end of the corridor. Pushing open the door with his shoulder, he paused to twist around and place the book into his bag, letting the door slam back into place and making him look up in surprise. Right in front of him stood Peyton with her back to him, and Nathan giving him the death glare over her shoulder. He had obviously just interrupted the pair, but judging by Peyton's body language they weren't in the middle of making up.

The power of Nathan's glare caused Lucas to take a small step backwards, before coming to a stop; he slid his bag back into place and raked his hands through his still damp blonde hair, just as Peyton swung around to glance at him for a moment. She raked her deep green eyes up his body before locking onto his cobalt blue eyes for a split second, and Lucas could almost feel the pain she was trying to keep hidden, before she broke the moment and turned back to Nathan, just as he tore his gaze away from Lucas to look at Peyton accusingly.

x

Peyton instantly knew that Nathan was jumping to conclusions. She knew from the moment the door slammed shut and she felt Lucas' presence behind her without looking. He had just happened to walk out of the gym in that split second, and it was just coincidence, no matter what her heart was screaming at her. She did not believe in fate or destiny, and there was certainly nothing written in the stars. Peyton had protected her heart from the moment her mother was taken away from her, and feeling it suddenly kick into gear had her fighting against the new wave of emotion. She wouldn't let herself feel, because in the end she would end up alone and hurting.

She had been hanging around school tonight waiting for Coach Durham, to thank him for his kind words about her mother when she had gone to him yesterday. Looking at Nathan for a moment longer, knowing that no way he would let her explain even if she wanted to, which she didn't, she turned on her heel, walking away from him, and walking away from Lucas, needing the sanctuary of her car and the escape of her music.

With a screech of tires against concrete and loud rock music blaring out of the stereo, Peyton sped away from school in the general direction of home, knowing that they were both still stood on the sidewalk watching her leave. Walking away from Lucas made her broken heart ache further, but not being ready to deal with any more pain, Peyton quickly reinforced the wall around that part of her heart, but it didn't manage to stop the tears from filling her eyes. When her heart suddenly decided to kick in again, it caused the wave of emotion she had been fighting all week to suddenly crash over her. Taking the final corner far too fast, she abandoned her car diagonally across the drive, leaving the keys in the ignition, as she grabbed for her bag.

Sliding out of the car, she half kicked the door closed, before bounding up the porch steps two at a time, and rummaging around in her bag for her house keys. Somehow they had managed to fall right into the bottom, meaning she had to pull her sketch pad out first, throwing it to the floor in frustration. Why had she locked the front door earlier? It wasn't one of her usual habits.

Finally getting the right key into the lock, she half-heartedly pushed the door closed, dropping her bag in the middle of the hallway and bolting upstairs to her room, just as the tears started to over flow, making silent tracks down her cheeks. Peyton accidently dropped her house keys at the top of the stairs, not bothering to retrieve them after they made a metallic clink onto the wooden floors.

Slamming her bedroom door closed, Peyton slid out of her leather jacket, throwing it in the general direction of the bed, whilst simultaneously walking across her room and banging her computer keyboard until it started playing music, and turning it up as loud as the speakers would go.

Heading into her walk-in wardrobe, she was intent on finding one particular item, but considering that the item in question caused her a lot of pain, she had hidden it away, out of sight; out of mind, in one of the boxes on the top shelf. Grabbing the box in question, it was heavier than she remembered, causing her to stagger to keep her balance, which in turn caused half of the hangers to jump off the rail and hit the floor. Ignoring the mess she was making, hell it wasn't like anyone was home telling her to tidy her room, she slid the box onto her bed, pulling out the contents until she reached the bottom, and pulled out an extremely creased dress bag. Sliding the zip to the bottom, she pulled a deep green dress off the padded hanger, feeling the delicate silk material between her fingers and not resisting the tears as they flowed faster down her cheeks.

Staggering into the bathroom to find some tissue, Peyton crashed to the floor, curling her legs into her chest to try to block the pain.

x

Lucas sat staring at the steering wheel of his car, trying desperately to get Peyton's haunted eyes out of his mind, but every time he blinked it was as through someone burnt it further onto his eyelids, strengthening the image. He knew she was going through a tough week, but she seemed to have been coping better the past couple of days. What had Nathan said to her to throw her right back to the bottom again? Some days it was hard to even imagine that the two brothers where even related, as they where the exact opposite of each other. Just the thought of hurting Peyton made Lucas feel physically sick.

Throwing the car into gear, Lucas made the snap decision to check that she had gotten home okay. It wasn't like Nathan was going to bother, and with the way she had blown up at Brooke earlier in the week and missed cheerleading tonight; he doubted that her best friend would be calling around any time soon. Lucas just prayed that she wasn't still running red lights, because it would be impossible to catch up with her.

Turning the corner onto her street, most of her house looked dark, but her car's interior light was blinking as the door was half open. Pulling up haphazardly next to the curb, Lucas slid out of his car, and cautiously made his way over to her car, glancing into the interior to see the usual collection of CDs and schoolwork littering her back seat. Noticing her keys where still in the ignition, he pulled them swiftly out, before slamming the door closed and locking it securely.

Rolling his eyes, he knew she had only had her car back from the garage for about a week after it had been crashed into another car by Nathan whilst he was drunk because she had left the keys in the car at the beach party. He knew this because he had been the one to witness the crash, and the one to repair her car after Nathan had walked away.

Walking up the couple of steps to her front door, he found her sketch pad strewn across the porch and the front door was ajar slightly. Lucas began to get worried. As a rule Peyton was very protective of her artwork. Lucas remembered the way her anger flashed in her eyes when she caught him looking through her sketchpad. Just seeing the fire in her eyes had left him speechless, but that fire that usually burns uncontrollably, had disappeared when he had looked into her eyes tonight. Lucas glanced into the darkness of her house, with fear creeping slowly up this throat. Although she rarely locked her front door, she hardly ever left it wide open.

Gathering her artwork back into the protective binding of her sketchpad, he pushed open the door and stepping into the dark hallway. A car drove past on the street at that moment, the headlights illuminating the room for a spilt second, allowing Lucas to spot her bag in the middle of the floor before he fell over it, and locating the light switch.

Pushing the front door closed until it clicked, Lucas suddenly felt like he was following a trail of bread crumbs through her house, which whilst it made life easier in locating her, he was afraid of what he might find at the end. Grabbing her bag, and pushing her sketchpad back inside, he quickly scanned the downstairs rooms, noting that everything seemed in place, before he made his way upstairs, running his fingertips up the smooth handrail, and hearing the familiar creaks of well-worn wooden floorboards. He knew roughly which room was hers, but with the sound of loud music being generated from one room in particular, causing the walls to vibrate, and with light streaming through the small space under a closed door, he definitely knew where he was heading.

Knocking gently on the painted black door, even though he doubted she would hear it over the music, he nervously twisted the handle, silently thanking that it wasn't locked as he wasn't in the mood for breaking it down if she was in trouble, and for the first time stepped into Peyton's bedroom. Sure, he had seen the inside of her wardrobe over her webcam knowing that she could be slightly disorganized, but he wasn't prepared for the mess he walked into. Clothes had been thrown across the room, landing in small piles against the skirting boards; half the blankets had been pulled off the bed onto the floor, and a massive box had half its contents strewn across the floor, with a dress bag thrown on top.

Lucas looked around the room in shock. Peyton was no-where to be seen, but her presence could be felt through the many pieces of her artwork she had stuck on the walls, and in certain cases, painted directly onto the plaster. Lucas, in any other situation, could have stared at them for hours, marveling at her talent and trying to decipher her moods, but the music was quickly giving him a headache. Dropping her bag by the door before stepping carefully across the bomb site that was her room, he tapped the keyboard to turn the music off, and it was only then he could hear the muffled sobs that escaped under the closed door in the corner, that Lucas assumed lead into her bathroom.

Pushing the door open gently, so that he didn't startle her, Lucas felt as though someone had ripped his heart out of his chest when he looked down to the broken hearted girl falling to pieces on the floor. Peyton was sat in the small space between the sink and the bath with her arms curled around her knees, and a green piece of material scrunched into a ball against her chest. On hearing the door open, she turned for a fraction of a second to look at the intruder, before looking away again, but in that moment Lucas saw tears pouring down her face, mixing with mascara to form black rivers.

Lucas inhaled sharply in shock, and hesitated long enough to swear under his breath, before striding across the small section of floor separating them. Lowering himself down to the floor gently, making no sudden movements, Lucas stretched one leg out in the small space between her back and the side of the bath, before reaching out to gently touch her shoulder.

Feeling her muscles jump in surprise from the contact, he reassuringly trailed his fingers up and down her back, until he felt her relax slightly to his touch. Lucas knew her defenses where still up, and the last thing he wanted was for her to push him away, so he moved hesitantly, grabbing the near-by box of tissues, and pulling a few out before moving his hand to her far shoulder and with a slight pressure, encouraged her lean against his chest. He felt her falter for a second, before her defenses caved completely bringing down all of the walls that where guarding her heart, and she twisted around to burry her head into his chest, allowing the green fabric to fall to the side as her hand moved to grip the edge of his t-shirt instead.

Lucas felt her shoulders shaking, as the quiet sobs ripped through her slender frame, and he quickly felt the front of his t-shirt becoming soaked through from her tears. Keeping his arm wrapped protectively around her shoulders, silently letting her know he wasn't going anywhere, he slid his free arm under her knees to pull her in closer, before moving his hand to stroke her hair gently.

x

Peyton was so consumed with the pain in her heart that she didn't notice when her music was suddenly silenced. The green dress was clenched in one of her hands against her chest, as the tears slid down her cheeks and dripped off the edge of her jaw, leaving yet another black mark on the delicate material. The quiet creak of the door as it swung open caused her to jump visibly, twisting her head around slightly, causing her hair to stick in clumps to her damp cheeks, to see a large pair of trainers standing in the open doorway. Knowing exactly who it was just by his shoes, she quickly turned her face away from him, sliding the back of her hand under her eyes as she heard the sharp intake of breath followed closely by him swearing quietly.

Honestly, Peyton expected him to walk away, to leave her alone in her pain, so when she felt his presence come closer she held her breath in anticipation of the pain that would surely come when he left. Lucas' gentle touch to her shoulder caused her tense muscles to flinch in response, and as she felt his fingertips trail up and down her back, a sense of comfort and familiarity overcame her.

Peyton remembered that when she was small, her mother use to gently rub her back whilst she was reading her bedtime stories, to help her relax and fall asleep. Somehow she must have repressed that memory, but the emotions that came flooding back with it caused the tears to fill her eyes again. She felt Lucas' muscles stretch for a moment, before he wrapped his arm around her back, pulling her into his chest. Peyton resisted for a split second, her independence flaring up, but her weak defensive walls around her heart soon crumbled down, and she leant against his chest, burying her head into his neck.

The green dress was soon forgotten as she let go of it in favor of curling her hand around a section of Lucas' t-shirt, holding onto it as though it was a lifeline. Peyton felt him move, as Lucas slid her legs closer, tucking her protectively against his chest and wrapping his arms around her, patiently waiting for her tears to run dry. With her hand pressed against his chest she could feel his heart beat steadily underneath his skin, and she could hear the gentle rumble when he spoke gentle words into her hair. In between the comforting, nonsense words Lucas was whispering, Peyton felt him pause for a second to pull her closer for a moment, and she felt his lips touch her hair.

Taking a deep breath, filling her lungs with Lucas' unique scent that somehow managed to lessen the pain in her heart in a way that she couldn't explain; she regained control of her tears, before pulling back slightly to un-stick her cheek from his now damp shirt. Lucas released his hand from where it was buried in her hair, letting her move a fraction away from him, but left his other hand resting protectively against her shoulder. Embarrassment was quickly setting in, and a blush was slowly creeping its way up to her cheeks, so Peyton dropped her hold on Lucas' shirt and grabbed at the tissues she found littered around her feet, to wipe away the remaining moisture.

Peyton watched as he moved the box of tissues closer, before pulling one out and catching one final tear as it slid down her cheek. Peyton looked up, locking onto Lucas' blue eyes and he held her gaze for a moment, with a soft smile playing on the corner of his lips, before he gently slid away from her, rising to his feet and backing out of the bathroom, leaving the door open halfway.

Gathering the used tissues, Peyton threw them into the bin, before clambering to her feet. Sitting on the floor had done nothing for her protesting muscles. Glancing into the mirror she saw faded black marks down her face from where her mascara had run. Grabbing a make-up remover wipe, she quickly set to work, trying to ignore the red rims around her eyes. Pulling her hair back and securing it with the band around her wrist, Peyton reached down to grab the dress off the floor, before walking back into her room.

x

Lucas wanted to hold her in his arms forever, although preferably without her tears which were slowly shattering his heart. Pulling her in slightly closer in response to that thought, he gently rested his cheek on top of her head for a moment, allowing his lips to touch her hair as he desperately wanted to ease her pain. He felt her move in his arms slightly and her nose skimmed along his collar bone, causing a shiver to creep down his spine. Through his palm on her back Lucas noticed a change in rhythm to her heartbeat, and he felt her pull away from him slightly, but he wasn't ready to let her go just yet.

Silently Lucas watched as Peyton grabbed at the tissues he had dropped by her feet, as he kept one hand resting on her shoulder hoping that the contact will keep her defensive walls from re-building. He stretched slightly, bringing the box of tissues closer, before pulling one out to catch the final tear before it dripped of the edge of her jaw. Holding her gaze gently he could read all the emotions that were flying around inside her, but the strongest one was embarrassment as he noticed the flush creeping up her cheeks.

Moving slowly away from her, but feeling like he has left his heart behind, Lucas slowly backed out of the bathroom. He had lived with his mom long enough to know when a 'girly moment' was needed, and now was definitely one of them times for Peyton.

Looking around her room, it had been easy to forget that this was on the other side of the bathroom door when he had Peyton in his arms. Quickly setting to work he managed to figure out where everything had come from, and just as he was wrapping her leather jacket around the back of her computer chair, the bathroom door creaked open again and she silently padded out with the green piece of material held gently in her hands.

Turning the volume down on the speakers, he clicked onto a softer song, watching her quietly was she wrapped the straps around the padded hanger and hung it on her wardrobe door.

"It was my mom," she whispered, still staring at the dress and Lucas crashed down into the chair as his heart beat painfully for her as she turned to sit on the edge of her bed, "Except that I've managed to ruin it over the years with mascara stains."

Lucas shuffled closer, trying to be understanding without invading her personal space. He wasn't sure how she would react to him still being in her room.

"Well this year I've also managed to ruin your shirt as well," she attempted to joke, as she hesitantly reached out to touch the dirty mark, and her eyes locked on with his. He knew she was over the worst of the pain for now, but it was still there, like a dull ache behind her eyes. Wrapping his fingers around hers, Lucas held her hand against his chest, and for a split second he saw a spark of the usual fire that was usually burning in her eyes.

"It's getting late," she whispered, dropping her gaze down to the floor, and Lucas knew what she was getting at. It was time for him to leave and them to go back to how they were before this week.

Untangling their fingers, Lucas was surprised when her fingers lingered against his chest for a moment longer before dropping back down into her lap. Standing up, he made to leave, when he felt her fingers slide down his arm to his wrist, holding on both hesitantly but firmly.

"Stay…" she murmured, so low that Lucas almost didn't catch it. "I don't want to be alone."

Lucas stared at her speechless, glancing between her hand and her eyes, wondering if this is really what she wanted. He knew she was feeling vulnerable, and he didn't want to take advantage of that. He knew that she was still waiting for an answer, but he didn't know how to word it properly, and the silence started to drag.

x

Peyton forced herself to walk out of the bathroom, and she was glad that Lucas didn't make a big deal of it. He understood her in a way no-one else had before, but instead of pushing him away like she usually would have, she was just cautious now, preparing the foundations for some new walls, but not reinforcing them like before.

Wrapping the dress around the hanger, she felt the need to explain as her hand lingered slightly at the newest black mark, and she moved away, sitting on the edge of her bed. She needed him to know that this wasn't the first time she had ended up in a heap on her bathroom floor, but she also wanted him to know that this was the first time anyone had ever been there with her in the pain.

"Well this year I've also managed to ruin your shirt as well," she attempted to lighten the situation, as he moved closer to her but still wary of touching her. Peyton hesitantly moved, trying to let him know silently that it was okay, as she reached out to brush her fingertips across the still damp mark.

Touching his skin, even just through his shirt, sent a shockwave up her arms, and her breath hitched in response. Her eyes flew up to his face, wondering if the same thing had happened to him, and she held his gaze as he scanned her face looking for something. Without looking away he twisted his fingers through hers, holding them gently against his chest so that she could feel his heart beat, and understand the things he couldn't say.

"It's getting late," Peyton whispered, dropping her gaze away from his intense eyes, so that he couldn't see how much she needed him right now. Through her fingertips she could feel his body language change, and he dropped her hand. Confused she left her fingers linger against his chest, wanting to feel his heart beat one more time before recoiling it back into her lap.

Watching his knees, almost touching hers, she was surprised when he stood up and started to head for the door. In an instant she knew he didn't understand, and she had to stop him. She couldn't cope spending another night alone in an empty house.

Grabbing onto his wrist as it swung by, she stopped his movement. "Stay," she pleaded silently, looking up into his eyes. "I don't want to be alone," she tailed off, watching as his deep blue eyes flashed between hers and his wrist. She could feel the conflict he was fighting, wanting to protect her whilst also trying not to take advantage of her. The silence began to drag, and with it sleep began to overpower Peyton's eyelids. She hadn't slept properly in well over a week, and she was loosing the battle now that she felt safe.

Dropping his wrist and scooting backwards on the bed, Peyton slid in between the covers, elegantly wiggling out of her jeans and into the pair of shorts she slept in, leaving Lucas to decide on his own.

Sleep began to pull on her eyelids as she gently rested her head against her pillow, but she was still half conscious when she felt the bedsprings move again, and Lucas slid in besides her. In that instant she felt completely safe and protected, and her fight against the sleep was lost.

x

Lucas looked into her green eyes, hoping that he wasn't rejecting her with his silence. He felt her fingers leave his wrist, and in an instant he felt incomplete again. He watched as she wiggled beneath the covers, and he heard the dull thud of her jeans hitting the wooden floor. Fighting against his hormones, the need to protect her easily winning, he kicked off his shoes and was thankful he still had his basketball shorts on underneath his jeans, which had been bunching up annoyingly, but this was the first time he had noticed.

Sliding in gently next to her, he was surprised when a small smile played across her lips and he knew she wasn't far from sleep. She moved without opening her eyes, resting her hand against his chest and her brow furrowed slightly.

"Peyt… what's wrong?" he whispered, hoping desperately that he made the right choice.

"No shirt," she breathed, and Lucas wasn't entirely sure if she was still awake, but he understood. Sitting up slightly he pulled his shirt over his head, before settling back against the pillows, watching as her hand ghosted across his chest, coming to rest over his heart and the smile played across her lips again. Her breathing evened out, and he knew she was asleep. Brushing her hair back away from her face, he watched her quietly for a few moments. Memorizing the way her long eyelashes brushed across her cheeks, to the sharp outline of her jaw and the soft curve of her lips.

He could stay and watch her forever, but the fight against sleep had turned it attention to him. Fighting it for a few moments longer, as he didn't know what mood she would wake up in, he watched as she flinched in her sleep and she moved to rest her head gently against his chest, before breathing a sigh of relief. With her soft curls splayed across his shoulder, Lucas gently wrapped his arm around her back, holding her gently against him before allowing sleep to take him too.

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><p>AN - I imagined the song that Lucas plays is Kate Voegele - Inside out. The lyrics -

_'I am awake, It's getting late, I'm in no state to be alone now, Yeah I'm alone now. _

_Come light the fire in my room, I think I'm losing all control now, I don't even know how, But I'm in your riptide, and now I'm inside out'_

were stuck in my head during writing the end section.

I do not own this song, although Kate Voegele is awesome. Please review x


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